With last week being our last home tailgate of the season and this being kentucky’s ‘bye ‘ week, things around the tailgate are a little down. I made the suggestion that we should take a bye’ week ourselves here on the site, but Fertig insisted that you could not live without our insightful commentary and up to the minute Wildcat news. So, in order to please Fertig and you, our loyal reader (singular, thanks Mom!), I will give you what you want…More of me!

No one has taken the time to e-mail me and ask me how I came up with the Tailgater of the Week questions, so, I will e-mail myself to ask me. Wonderful! I just received an e-mail from a very handsome man and he would like to know where I came up with the questions I ask our weekly tailgater of the week honoree. Thanks for writing Rob, I actually don’t remember. I will be replying to your e-mail later with a few hot pictures of myself and a well-known Lexington sportscaster attached that I will ask you to keep to yourself. Where was I? Oh yeah, cranberry sauce. I have never been a big fan of that stuff. One thing I am a fan of though is self promotion and telling you all (hi mom!) how absolutely wonderful I am.

This week’s Tailgater of the Week is my best friend. He never lets me down when times are tough and he never yells at me for making rare mistakes. He prides himself on being a great American and towel folder. Seriously, he is a really fantastic towel folder. This week’s winner is known for putting nothing ahead of the tailgate party. He has actually missed a couple of good friend’s weddings in the past couple of years because there was a home football game. He would love to be able to say he is sorry, but unfortunately, he can’t because he is not sorry at all and will do it again if he has to. Our honoree occasionally feels as if he would like to tailgate by himself because no one can do anything right, but also enjoys the presence of good friends. He has never met an opponent that he did like or a drink he didn’t like besides the horrifying Mint Julep. If for some reason you are confused by my self-indulgence or do not recognize the picture above, I present to you….me!

Name? Robert Allen ‘By God’ Pedigo

Where are you from? The Streets

Where do you live now? Just off I-64

Do you have season tickets for UK football? You bet your sweet ass I do.

How long have you been attending UK football games? My first UK football game was in the mid-80s. My Uncle Clarence took me and I could not tell you who was playing. The people in our section stood the entire time and I was not tall enough to see over them. I tried standing on my seat in order to see over them, but that still wasn’t any better. At half time Uncle Clarence took me to the souvenir stand and bought me one of those plastic wildcat heads you wear on your head. You might have seen Bill Clinton wearing the Arkansas version in old pictures from his college days. I still have that damn thing at my home, but have no clue if Kentucky won the game.

Good or bad, what is your most memorable UK football moment? For any true Kentucky football fan that was there, the Bluegrass Miracle is the most memorable moment. Stevie getting loose, beating #1 LSU, the Alabama, and the Georgia goalpost games were great, but nothing sparked as many emotions as the miracle Hail Mary LSU put on the cats. I was sitting in the front row of the end zone helping boys and girls over the wall as time ran out on the Tigers. The guy I was sitting with was high fiving and celebrating as all of us were. As the pass was thrown and Kentucky fans started onto the field, my friend stood up out of his folding chair. When the pass was caught and LSU fell into the end zone, a UK fan grabbed my friends folding chair and threw it out onto the field and the many people standing on the field in shock. The chair hammered a guy in the back and he turned around and mean mugged my friend and I as the actual chair thrower was running out of the stadium. My friend just pointed to the exit as if to say “he went thatta way”. Classic and miserable.

If you could choose Three UK related individuals to tailgate with, dead or alive, who would they be? The first person is a no doubter, Mr. Bill Keightley. Anyone who was lucky enough to know Mr. Bill for any period of time will tell you he loved his bourbon, as I do. He represented all that is good about Kentucky athletics and I miss him.

The second person would be Eddie Sutton. It is an odd choice for a UK fan, I know, but the stories Eddie must have. My favorite part of tailgating is the telling of stories and I would love to hear more about the probation and violations committed by Eddie’s staff while at UK. Eddie is a former alcoholic , but maybe I can talk him out of retirement.

The third would be my good friend, Coach Rich Brooks. I have not met anyone more kind and generous as Coach Brooks in my life. He has been in the game for a long time and has many great stories to tell. He can also inform me of the best knot to tie on my fishing pole, plus he enjoys bourbon.

If you could choose three famous people not related to UK to tailgate with, dead or alive, who would they be? Deion Sanders would be my first choice. He was my hero growing up and seemed like a great time. He later found Jesus and became less appealing, but now seems to be off that wagon and I would like to hang with Primetime for an afternoon.

The second would be Abraham Lincoln. There aren’t many more important people to have ever lived in America. Not only was he born in Kentucky, I have been told all of my life I am kin to him somewhere down the line. The only resemblance we have is the fashionable top hats we wear.

The third would be Howard Stern. I have been a Stern super fan for over 10 years now and he is my hero. He is not only a genius; he is an inspiration to those who wish for something bigger for themselves and their families. Plus he frequently has lesbians, Beetlejuice, and ‘High Pitch’ Eric on his show.

Name one person that you would never want to show up at yore tailgate, dead or alive. I don’t have a name for you, but any angry cops. Those cops who had no friends in high school and were not popular, but now have a gun and a badge and would love to ruin a bunch of cool people’s time. I have been told this is called “little penis syndrome”. I am sorry that you suffer from a disease, but just stay away.

What game do you most look forward to tailgating for? I can honestly say the next one. I love the tailgating experience so much I don’t have a favorite game to tailgate for. I love them all and any chance to get back out there is the one I look forward too.

If you could tailgate at any other school in the country for one game, which school would you choose? I was fortunate enough to be able to attend an LSU vs. UK night game a few years ago. I doubt tailgating gets any better than that, but I will say the University of Hawaii.

How would you describe your tailgating “style”? It’s similar to a fall festival in a quaint Swedish village, but not really.